Ice Cream and Puppies
by Aria6
Summary: A sweet little Axel/Roxas one shot. There is NO smut! Amazing, no? But there's a lot of fluffy cuddlynes. : A next life fic. Please read and review!


_I wasn't sure why I was so attracted to him._

_I never thought about the age difference, and I should have. He was only a freshman and I was a senior. But I never thought of anything at all except the way his beautiful blue eyes called to me. I had to be near him. It was like wine to a drunkard, like air to a drowning man. Shit, you'd think I was a poet. Hah. Well, all I knew was that I needed it. More than I'd ever needed anything in my life._

_It's funny how things go…_

* * *

Fingers flicked through the comfortable motions of lighting a cigarette. Pulling it out of its case. Flicking on the lighter. A quick puff of smoke and the heady sweetness followed by the hit of cloves. Axel preferred Djarium Black cigarettes for the spicy flavor. Spice was something he loved.

Fingers suddenly stopped moving and Axel stared, the cigarette hanging from suddenly lax fingers. There was a kid standing by a locker, looking earnestly at a paper and trying to open his combination lock. It looked like he wasn't having much luck but all of that was secondary to Axel's stunned amazement.

The kid was beautiful. He had lovely golden hair, huge blue eyes that looked absolutely adorable in his childish face. Axel was overwhelmed with the strange feeling that he _knew_ this kid although he could swear he'd never seen him before.

"Hey, you need help with that?" He only realized he was moving when he heard his own voice. The blonde looked up from his vexing task with a blink.

"If you could… I can't seem to make it work…?" The boy smiled at him and Axel swallowed, his mouth feeling dry. He looked down at his cigarette and shifted it around so it was caught between his knuckles. Then he went to work on the lock.

"What's your combination?" He asked absently as he struggled to get the stiff mechanism to move. The boy consulted his paper and gave him the numbers. "Ah… there." It finally opened with a click and the blonde smiled gratefully.

"Thank you." He said politely, putting his bag into the locker. Axel leaned against the wall and watched him for a moment, captivated.

"My name is Axel. A-X-E-L, got it memorized?" He said jokingly and the boy looked up with a vaguely troubled look on his face. "What's your name?"

"Me? Oh, I'm Roxas. I just came here from Felicity Academy." Roxas said and Axel snorted his understanding.

"Freshman, huh? I'm a senior. Hey, want to come see a puppy sometime?" Roxas shot him a startled look and Axel expanded cheerfully. "My mum's Chihuahua had a litter. They're about six weeks old and the cutest things you ever saw." Axel was having to restrain himself from inviting this cute, incredibly alluring blonde to everything he could think of. But he remembered his pops advice, before the old man vanished. _Don't hump her leg._ Roxas wasn't a girl but the advice still stood.

"Maybe sometime." From the look on Roxas face he found that to be a very attractive offer. Axel wasn't surprised. Who could resist the allure of itty bitty cute li'l puppies? "I'll see you at lunch." He added shyly, gazing up at Axel with those huge blue eyes. Axel nodded as he heard the first bell ring.

"Sure thing Roxas." He watched the blonde go, taking a drag from his cigarette. The blonde glanced back and their eyes met for a moment before he blushed and hurried away. Axel sighed, stubbing out his cigarette and heading for class.

It was going to be a long time until lunch.

* * *

"They are so CUTE!" The girl squealed as she leaned over the cardboard box holding the bitch and her pups. What was her name again? Axel had to think about it a moment before he remembered. Olette, that was it.

He hadn't been keen on inviting all of Roxas' friends over but the blonde had asked nicely. So he'd decided to roll with it and invited them all over with a friendly grin. Pence and Hayner were both holding little puppies and getting thoroughly licked as Olette and Roxas cooed over the last three. The mama Chihuahua watched the whole thing tolerantly. She was used to having her offspring handled.

"Yeah, pretty awesome." Axel agreed. "Ma sells them too, if you're looking for a dog." Olette looked at the puppies longingly but shook her head.

"Mom would kill me if I brought home another pet. And I couldn't afford one anyway." Axel decided not to point out that they were going for a hundred bucks a pop. Not the kind of price you would expect for any decently bred Chihuahua, but these were not decently bred. They seemed to be mostly free of health problems but there were no guarantees. "They're really cute though." Olette picked up a puppy, smiling. Roxas followed suit and Axel leaned against the wall, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it as he watched. It was a pretty sweet scene, really. Kids and puppies, what more did you need? Hmm.

"You guys like something to eat? Drink?" Axel offered but his visitors declined. "You sure? We've got Doola Cola. It's awful but it's cheap and wet." It was a hot day. There was a brief silence as the kids considered that.

"Actually, sure, I'd like some." Pence was the first to say and Axel grinned, going to the kitchen and getting out some big plastic cups. His mum was too cheap to buy anything but the crappiest store brand, but he'd gotten used to it. She wouldn't object much if he shared it with his friends either. Although these kids weren't exactly his friends yet. He hoped they would be though. Roxas was clearly very close to them and Axel would do anything to get closer to the blonde. If that meant sucking up to his buddies, he was all for it.

The kids drank their pop as they sat down and played with the puppies. A good time was had by all, but they finally had to leave to walk home or in some cases, catch a bus. Axel waved goodbye and Roxas waved back, smiling.

This was going somewhere good. He could feel it.

* * *

"I think I'm in love." Axel confided in a Chihuahua puppy. It ignored him, intent on stalking his pencil. "And you are annoying. Stop that." Axel finally picked up the puppy and set him back on the floor. The pup whined a complaint but then ran out of the room, probably to annoy his brothers and sisters. "Hmm." Axel contemplated his drawing with a small, secretive smile.

His mother didn't know much about him. She certainly didn't know his yen for artwork. Axel had been seriously working on his drawing technique for years and had ambitions to become a professional illustrator someday. He was already drawing comics and had hopes for putting up an online one. The only part that was giving him trouble was the plot. Eye candy was divine but a good plot was essential.

Right now, though, he was drawing something else entirely. His pencil flicked across the pad, gradually filling in the details of a cute, smiling face. The eyes were the best part. Axel could picture them in his sleep and he lovingly sketched them, the way they sparked when Roxas –

"Axel!" Axel winced at the scream from downstairs. "Take out the garbage!"

"Yes mum." Axel replied mechanically, putting away his sketch pad. He knew she would have more chores for him than that. After his father left it seemed like he was pushed into being the man of the house, whether he liked it or not. And Axel didn't like it. He liked being an irresponsible punk, not the –

"And fix the door like I told you to yesterday!" – General handyman. Axel sighed to himself. He really wasn't any good at fixing stuff but his mother did not want to hear that and there was simply no point in arguing with her. Selective hearing was something she was really, really good at.

"Yes mum." Axel pulled out the garbage easily enough as his mother went back to her computer games. She was heavily addicted to Farmville and chat rooms. Axel sometimes wondered who she was underneath it all, but always decided it was way too much trouble to find out. He'd considered joining the chat rooms and talking with her there but he was glumly certain most of that involved cyber sex. That would be far too mentally scarring.

"Now how the fuck do I do this?" Axel regarded the ugly, paint-peeling, half-broken door in disgust. It was pretty much in the same state as the rest of the house, except it wasn't doing even a half-assed job. "Hmm." Axel began trying to figure out the hinges. It took a long time, a lot longer than it should have but he finally had it back in half-assed working condition. "There!" Axel put aside the screwdriver and hammer with a feeling of relief. He doubted the repair would last long but maybe his mum would finally give in and buy a new door. Or hire someone who knew what the hell they were doing. Neither was likely but a man could hope.

Axel finally got to go back to his room, but there was no time left for drawing. He broke out his science books instead and got to work on his homework. There was no way in hell he was going to college or university. His grades might have gotten him in, but there was no money to pay for it. And Axel knew better than to ask his mum to fill out any paperwork so there would be no loans or scholarships forthcoming until he'd been on his own for at least three years. Maybe then he would think about taking out a loan and going to Uni. Maybe.

He would just have to see.

* * *

"Go Roxas! Fight fight fight!" Axel cheered the blonde on as he dueled with Hayner.

They were both participating in the Struggle tournament. Axel had considered entering, but it wasn't really his thing. He was sure he'd get his ass kicked so why bother? It was a lot more fun just watching and cheering Roxas on. Axel smiled, pulling out his sketch pad and trying to make a quick sketch of Axel and Hayner fighting. Capturing the movement wasn't that easy.

A loud cheer came from the crowd and Axel joined it as Roxas won. Hayner and Roxas shook hands and the stockier, sandy blonde boy left the arena. Roxas' next opponent was a girl and Axel frowned to himself for a moment. Her hair was just as blonde as his and he felt like he should know her.

The battle that followed was fast and furious and the crowd was on the edge of their seats. Axel smiled to himself as he sketched a bit more. The girl was good but somehow he was sure the outcome was not in any doubt.

He was right. Roxas beat her handily and she stored out of the arena. Roxas followed a moment later… this was his last bout for the day. Axel quickly closed his sketch pad and shoved it in his backpack.

"Hey there Roxas!" He called as he caught up with the kid. He was putting away his struggle bat in one of the lockers. "Still need help with the lock?" Roxas looked up with a smile and shook his head.

"No, I'm fine." He closed the locker firmly as Axel leaned against the wall, watching him. "I was wondering. Would you like to come to the movies? I'm going to see Beautiful Stranger." Axel raised his eyebrows for a moment, thinking about it. That wasn't his type of movie. He vastly preferred action over everything else and that was a psychological horror. On the other hand… _Roxas. A scary movie. Dark theatre. Hmm. _Axel smiled to himself. That had definite possibilities.

"Sure. Is anyone else coming?" Axel asked, hoping there wasn't. But Roxas nodded.

"My mom. She's taking me to the theatre although she's going to be watching Lost the Movie." Roxas said. Axel wondered briefly what his mom would make of a punk in a leather jacket, with tats on his face and a half-pack a day cigarette habit. Roxas didn't seem worried though. "I'm trying to talk her into a puppy." Roxas admitted and Axel had to laugh.

"Those puppies suck everyone in!" He smiled, pulling out a cigarette and rolling it between his fingers. "Sure Roxas, I'd love to come." He paused to light the cig, carefully blowing the smoke away from Roxas. The blonde smiled and gripped his other arm.

"She'll be waiting. C'mon." Axel followed willingly. Roxas' mother was waiting for them by her car, looking at a watch impatiently. Axel studied her for a moment as they walked over. She was a very pretty woman with long blonde hair and firm, strong features. Too strong to be conventionally beauty, she nonetheless managed to look quite attractive. Her clothing was quite businesslike, an off white blouse and a black pencil skirt. Her makeup was expertly applied to emphasis her ice blue eyes. She looked up from her watch with a frown as she spotted the two of them.

"Roxas. Who is this?" She eyed Axel with obvious disfavor and he smiled back, friendly as could be. Roxas quickly spoke.

"It's Axel, mom. I went to his house last week." The blonde said. Her frowned eased a bit but didn't entirely disappear and she nodded.

"The one with the puppies. I remember." She didn't sound like it was an entirely pleasant memory. Axel quickly shifted his cigarette to his offhand and offered her a hand to shake. She accepted it and gave him a quick, perfunctory handshake. Axel noticed that her clasp was a bit limp and rather girlish. A lot of girls he'd met just didn't know how to shake hands properly, and Roxas' mom was no exception.

"Is it okay if he comes with us to the movies mom?" Roxas asked and she paused in the act of opening the door, a flash of irritation crossing her features. Axel was pretty sure he was right in his original thought. She wasn't thrilled with a kid in a leather jacket with tats on his cheeks. She didn't seem to know how to handle that innocent question though and finally gave in with ill grace.

"Fine. But next time, ask me ahead of time." She snapped before climbing into the car. Roxas slid into the backseat and moved over so Axel could follow. He stubbed out his cigarette in the car ashtray then quickly buckled up. If he'd been with his own mum, he never would have but Roxas' mother seemed a touch uptight.

Axel did his best to change that as they were driving over to the mall. He could be pretty charming when he put his mind to it and he finally managed to make Roxas' mom laugh. Axel glanced over at Roxas triumphantly and was surprised to see the blonde looked… hurt? He frowned and impulsively put an arm around the younger boy, hugging him. Roxas stiffened for a moment then looked up into his face, his blue eyes uncertain. Axel wasn't sure what he was thinking… but he liked it when Roxas finally smiled back and hugged him. Liked it a lot in fact. _I've got it bad._ When they got to the theatre Roxas' mom took off to find her movie, leaving them to their own devices. Roxas and Axel bought themselves tickets and then the redhead consulted his wallet.

"Hey Roxas, you hungry?" He figured the blonde probably was. He'd likely caught a bite between school ending and the Struggle, but he'd have needed to eat really quickly. "Want some popcorn?" Theatre food was always expensive but Axel knew he could handle it. He had a part time job working at the drug store, and the money from that funded his cigarettes and other random crap. His mum had never given him much of an allowance. Roxas frowned then blushed as his stomach growled. "I'll take that as a yes." Axel said with a grin as he got in line to place his order. Roxas shrugged and lined up with him.

"It's been a while since supper." The blonde admitted. "And that was just a sausage roll." Axel nodded, unsurprised. It took a while for them to get to the front of the line, but when they did he got the double special… two drinks and two bags of popcorn for a discounted price. Roxas immediately popped a piece in his mouth and Axel grinned before following suit. The popcorn was delicious, nice and hot with plenty of butter.

The movie wasn't really that great, in Axel's opinion. But the way Roxas gripped his arm at the scariest parts was nice. So was the way Roxas occasionally glanced at him when he thought Axel wasn't looking. Axel was sure he could read fascination and warmth in those glances. That was _really_ nice. Axel smiled, casually putting a hand over Roxas'. There was a momentary pause before the blonde gripped his hand and Axel glanced over, meeting beautiful blue eyes.

He didn't know why he wanted to be around Roxas so badly, but it felt far too good to stop.

* * *

Axel breathed in the sweet, clove scented smoke and gazed out over the sidewalks and the trees. It was a beautiful day in Traverse Town. The sun was shining brightly and there was a light breeze cutting the heat of summer. He was hanging out with Demyx, sitting on a little stone fence and watching the traffic going by.

"So I hear you're hanging out with a bunch of freshmen!" Demyx laughed and Axel made a face at him as he casually smoked a cigarette. "Robbing the cradle Ax?"

"Stop being a perv Dem. We're just friends." Axel said easily, blowing a smoke ring. Demyx watched the smoke, idly strumming his sitar. "Heh. Truth is, I'm mostly friends with one of 'em. The others are okay but not that simpatico, you know?" Axel didn't mind Hayner and Pence. Olette, he wasn't so fond of but he wasn't going to breathe a word to Roxas about it. Roxas had been friends with them all his life and the redhead was sure if anything could come between them, it would be him trying to separate the blonde from his friends.

"That cute little blonde." Demyx chuckled, striking a powerful chord and making Axel wince. "That was out of tune." Demyx said, a little vexed as he fiddled with the tuning pegs. "These things are getting worn… I need new pegs."

"You need a job." Axel said absently and Demyx made a face at him. "Besides catching chicks."

"Oh ho! You're just jealous." Demyx said with a cheeky grin. "Chicks flock to me. And bucks." He added thoughtfully as Axel choked on his cigarette. "I quite like the cock actually. I wonder if that cute blonde of yours would like me?"

"You stay away from him!" Axel threatened Demyx with a shaken fist, making the mullet haired boy laugh. "You are such a perv. Is everything about sex with you?" Demyx looked thoughtful at that.

"No. Sometimes it's about music." Axel had to laugh, taking another deep drag from his cigarette. "Still, that blonde is really awfully young for you. On the other hand, you're very immature."

"You're just asking for a beating tonight, aren't you?" Axel observed as Demyx smiled and played his sitar. "Seriously though, I think we must be soulmates or something. Like your mum talks about." Demyx made a face at that. His mother was a psychic who earnestly believed in her own powers. She had a certain following in town but it was often embarrassing for her son, particularly since she festooned him with whatever mood bead or doodad she was trying out at the moment. "Speaking of your mum, what's the school doing about that computer?"

"I don't want to know." Demyx said firmly. His mother had insisted he wear magnetic jewelry to school and unfortunately, it had been a bit _too_ magnetic. That particular computer would never be the same. "Oh look, there's your blonde." Demyx said, changing the subject and Axel followed his gaze to see Roxas walking down the street with his friends.

"I'll go see if they want to hang out." Axel decided, jumping to his feet. Roxas was drawing him like a lodestone. "You want to come Dem?" He asked but the sitarist shook his head.

"No thanks. Not my crowd. You still coming to the bar tomorrow Ax?" He asked and Axel nodded absently, still watching Roxas. "See you then."

"Sure thing Demyx." Axel was looking forward to that. Roxas was far too young to go with him and Axel would miss having him around, but that was just the way it went. He couldn't dump all his friends for… whatever Roxas was to him. Not really a boyfriend yet although Axel wished he was. Axel was about to call out to the group when he noticed they were passing by the ice cream store. "Hmm." It would be the work of a moment to get a bit of that sea salt ice cream they all liked. Axel checked the contents of his wallet and smiled. He'd been cutting back a bit on the cigarettes so there was plenty. "Alright!" Axel smiled and went inside, the little bell overhead dingling as he opened the door. He wasn't worried about Roxas and the others getting away from him. He knew where they were likely going.

Sure enough. Axel could hear voices as he neared the hideaway. Roxas had shown it to him, although so far he'd only been there with the blonde. Axel paused a moment, surprised, as a bit of the conversation reached him. Had he heard his name?

"…Roxas, you should complain about it." Olette. But what was she talking about? Axel frowned and moved a bit closer, but not too close. He suddenly didn't want to be seen. He couldn't make out Roxas' reply but he certainly heard Olette's exasperated voice. "Roxas, it's creepy! You're only fifteen."

"It is pretty weird, the way he wants to hang out with us." Hayner. Axel's frown deepened. They had to be talking about him.

"He just wants to hang out with me." Roxas sounded a bit embarrassed. "Guys, really, it's fine…" Several voices spoke at once and Axel couldn't tell what they were saying. But the tone was easy to decipher and it was clear Roxas' friends didn't agree that anything was fine. Axel's gaze dropped to the bag in his hand, full of ice cream bars.

"Creepy?" He muttered to himself and shook his head, backing away. The only thing he was sure of at this moment was that he wasn't going to wander in there like he'd heard nothing. Instead, he made a quick exit and tried to think. Where should he go? "…Uhn." Axel chewed on the inside of his lip, then came to a quick decision. There was only one place to go right now.

Axel loved the clock tower. It was only a short walk from his home, which lay in its shadow. It had always been the place he went when his father was drinking again or his mother was in a bitchy mood. It was a good place to look at the rest of the town and just enjoy the fresh air and breezes. The view was spectacular although it helped that he wasn't at all afraid of heights. For anyone with a touch of that, it was scary as hell.

Dumping the ice cream beside him, Axel sat down on the edge and looked out over Traverse Town. The sun was beginning to set and he knew abstractly that he should be getting home. His mum wouldn't notice either way, but he had homework to do. Axel shook his head, deciding to put it off until tomorrow. He could always crib from Demyx if he absolutely had to. Axel glanced down at the bag in his hands, filled with melting ice cream. There was no way he could finish it all before it turned into soup, but he could try. Axel pulled out a bar, unwrapping it and biting into the ice cream.

"Ugh." He had to fight not to spit it out. The salt was too bitter, the ice cream beneath it sickly sweet. After a brief struggle he managed to swallow it and stared at the bar, unseeing as his mind went back to what he had heard.

He'd never considered his actions at all, Axel realized. He preferred to do things and think about them later, and somehow it had just never occurred to him that Roxas was too young. Or that the way he was trying to befriend Roxas' friends to get closer to the blond would be creepy. Was he being creepy though?

_Uh… well, he's four years younger than me. Check. Sexual fantasies? Check. A notebook full of sketches of him? Check. Buying candy for kids… oh man, check._ Axel sighed, dumping the melting ice cream bar into the bag and pulling out a cigarette. _Yeah, I'm a creeper._ He took a deep breath of the pungent smoke, letting it drift out of his nostrils in slow, languorous streams. So what was he going to do about it?

Despite appearances and the lack of parental supervision, Axel was not a bad kid. He got pretty good grades, only got drunk occasionally and never drove under the influence. He'd had a few boyfriends but not really that many and he'd always used a condom. People looked at the tats and the jacket and expected him to be nothing but an antisocial punk, but the tats had been his dads fault. The right one helped to hide an old burn mark his father had put on his face when he was carelessly waving around a hot poker from the fireplace. The left was for symmetry and his parents had been guilty enough to go with it when Axel suggested it. So he found himself placed in a dilemma that a true punk wouldn't have thought twice about.

"I need to back off." The words were as sour as the ice cream, but Axel couldn't escape the conclusion. If Roxas' friends thought he was creepy word would eventually get to his mom and the teachers at school. It would look bad then. Really, really bad. And he didn't want to be banned from seeing the blond entirely. That would be like the end of his world. Axel wasn't sure why he felt so strongly but he did. Too strongly to let Roxas slip through his fingers. "Okay. I can do this." Axel tried to pep himself up but couldn't stop the stinging, painful feeling deep in his chest. It was going to hurt a lot, pulling back from Roxas. Briefly, he wondered what the blonde would think. Then he pushed the thought away.

It was better not to know what other people were thinking. That was one thing Axel was certain of.

* * *

The next few weeks were confusing for Roxas.

He spoke with Axel in school as usual, but the redhead seemed strangely subdued. Even odder, he didn't invite Roxas and his friends over or ask what they were doing. Roxas finally asked if he wanted to join them at the park, but Axel just declined with a shake of his head.

"You didn't say something to him, did you?" He finally asked Olette, who looked at him in confusion. They were all in their little hangout, just talking and playing hackey sack.

"Say something to who?" She asked and Roxas hesitated before shaking his head.

"Nevermind." He was sure she wouldn't have done that. But as the others chatted back and forth Roxas just kicked his feet, missing the comforting presence of the redhead beside him. It had only been a couple months but he couldn't imagine living without Axel. He was like the best friend he'd never met and never realized he'd missed until he finally had him back. It was so strange. Roxas usually examined himself fairly closely but he didn't know why he felt this way.

"Hey Roxas, did you see that comic your friend submitted for the contest?" Roxas blinked, pulled back to reality and stared at Hayner blankly.

"What friend?" He had no idea what Hayner was talking about. The sandy blonde boy laughed as Olette made a face.

"You know, your redheaded boy toy." Roxas blushed brightly at that description and Olette smacked Hayner on the shoulder. "Well, he is isn't he? Oh, here, check this out." Hayner pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to him. Roxas unfolded it, looking at it curiously.

"…" The blonde stared, feeling an overwhelming sense of familiarity as he gazed at the comic. There was Axel, lanky and smiling brilliantly. But instead of a leather jacket and a cigarette, this comic version was wearing a long black coat and holding large steel wheels. The second figure made him swallow. It was himself, wearing the same coat and holding a blade shaped like a key. "I didn't know he could draw." Roxas murmured, smoothing the piece of paper between his fingers. He'd had no idea Axel could draw. Was that what he was doing with that notebook all the time? Hayner laughed again as Olette leaned over his shoulder, looking at the paper with a frown.

"He's been drawing you." She said, the disapproval in her voice thick enough to cut. "He's obsessed. Roxas, you really should – Roxas?" She reached out to him as Roxas lurched to his feet but he evaded her hand easily.

"I need to talk to him." He said vaguely, looking at the comic again. The two figures were standing on something very familiar, a building that overlooked the whole town – of course. The clock tower. "I'll see you guys tomorrow, okay?" Roxas ignored their calls, leaving the hideout to go find Axel. He needed to speak to the redhead. He wasn't sure what he was going to say but he knew he had to do something.

The clock tower was not very close to their hiding place and by the time he reached it, the sun was beginning to set. Roxas ignored that and climbed the stairs, although he hoped it wouldn't be full dark when he had to go back down. The clock tower had no lights so negotiating the stairs in the dark was always an interesting experience. A bit out of breath, he paused at the top and looked around.

_Axel._ Roxas breathed out a sigh of relief as he saw the redhead sitting on the edge of the tower, gazing out over the town morosely. A cigarette was hanging loosely in one hand, smoldering and in danger of going out. Roxas stepped out and Axel's head came up as he heard the tap of boots on stone. He glanced over and his eyes widened as he saw who had come to interrupt him.

"Roxas? What are you doing here?" He asked and the blond smiled before pulling out the little piece of paper Hayner had given him.

"I saw this and I knew you would be here." Axel glanced down at the comic and blushed as Roxas took a seat beside him. "Are you okay?" He gripped Axel's arm as the redhead started to say a soothing lie. "Axel, what's wrong? Please, you can tell me." The redhead hesitated, disarmed by the sincerity in big blue eyes.

"Nothing's wrong." He finally said and Roxas frowned up at him. "I just – don't want to be a creepy pervert, you know?" Axel looked away. "Sorry about that comic. It just came to me and the plot was actually good so… um… I just did it –"

"Axel." Roxas cut in before Axel could go on apologizing, leaning closer so he could rest a hand on the redhead's chest. Axel looked at him, his eyes wide in surprise. "There's nothing perverted about what we feel for each other." Roxas said with a deep and simple sincerity that made Axel swallow hard.

"Roxas." Axel murmured, finding himself leaning closer. _No, this isn't right, I can't, I shouldn't – _Lips met in a slow, tentative kiss. Yet despite the newness of it there was something so very familiar to it. It felt like they'd kissed a thousand times… each one just as beautiful and passionate as the first. When they pulled back Axel stared into Roxas' eyes, feeling breathless as he read the matching feeling in the blonde's face.

"I don't know why this is, Axel, but we're supposed to be together." Roxas said and Axel swallowed at the echoing of his own thoughts. Roxas felt it too. The familiarity, the connection wasn't just in his own mind. "I don't care what anyone thinks. Please, don't push me away."

"I – I won't." Axel promised, his voice husky with held back emotions. Roxas smiled then, and it was like the sun coming out from behind a cloud. It illuminated his whole world. Then something was pushed into his hand and Axel looked down blankly at a familiar wrapper.

"I stopped to get some ice cream." Roxas explained and Axel laughed, unpeeling the wrapper and taking a bite. The salt was just perfect to emphasis the sweetness of the ice cream. Why was it so different now? _Because Roxas is here with me._ Axel smiled and ate his ice cream, glancing at Roxas as he slowly licked his, pink tongue gliding over the blue bar. It didn't matter that they were in different grades. It didn't matter what anyone thought. They would be together.

That was all that mattered.


End file.
